Summer Skin
by Humanyubel
Summary: School's always been the same. Same name on AO3 for warnings.
1. Start

A narrow body cradled Takuya in their arms, shaking him. His school jacket flapped and he felt so cold. He didn't like the cold. He could hear wherever he was shaking. He wasn't scared, he realized. He felt quite a few things, peace, worry (but for who?), and longing; but fear held no place in the list. The air was thick with failure.

"Takuya….Takuya...please ..wake up! Wake up your jerk! You can't just-" He feels a shaking hand comb the hair out of his face and settle against the apple of his cheek. His shirt is torn and he's bleeding.

"Damn it! Wake up Damn it!"

"Takuya you better wake up young man! You're going to be late for your first day of the school year and you promised to walk Shinya to school this morning!"

Takuya starts awake. Sweat sticking his bangs to his forehead like super glue. His eyes flash over to the alarm clock next to his bed and he lets out a loud "LATE!" before hopping out of the bed. He grabs his binder and slips it on over his head. Like always, it gets stuck. He spends a solid two minutes hopping around blindly before yelling for his mom.

"Mom I need your help!" He calls out, his boisterous voice muffled by the fabric.

"Takuya… You have to give yourself time in the morning." She chides, setting something down before she moves to help him. In three tugs they have his binder on, he moves to his chair where he had left his clothes the night before but finds nothing. He panics for a second before his mother clears her throat and nods her head towards his bed.

"You were too preoccupied to lay your new uniform out." She smiles at him, though he can tell she's frustrated, she isn't mad. It had taken quite a while to take the measurements for him but it was worth it to see her son look comfortable in his uniform.

"Keep your jacket buttoned up, it's still cold out and remember: you can't wear your goggles in school. You and Shinya have a good day!"

He leans over and gives her a quick kiss on her pleasantly round cheek, then slips the goggles around his neck. Takuya runs out of the door only to come back forty seconds later. He slips on his olive colored gloves with his teeth. He knew it must be stressful having two overactive, scatter-brained sons.

He's ushering Shinya out like he's a puppy that can't follow verbal commands very well. So, like ke any big brother in a hurry with his brother in tow, he issues a race between the two of them.

His goggles clack together but he pays them no mind, he only runs faster. As they run past the suburbs, Shinya lagging behind by a short distance, he hears barking. His head whips in the direction of the sudden noise, he's on alert. He still remembered the time Shinya got bit by a dog when he was little. When his eyes locate where the noise is coming from, his brain turns to static. A boy with long, dark blue hair in a ponytail was struggling to control a dog noticeably stronger than him. An itch began in the back of his mind and he couldn't take his eyes off of the other.

"Down! Don't chase after-!" The large dog ignores his owner, panting happily as it knocked its owner off his feet and proceeded to drag him along.

The boy yelped half formed curses, trying to ground himself.

"Big brother!" Shinya huffs, he must've noticed something wasn't right.

"Yeah?" He asks, finally shaking himself out of his stupor. The static is still there, but it's dull. Like T.V. Static in the dead of night.

"We're going to miss my school completely if we go this way any longer!" He points out. He's obviously out of breath; but he continues on, his backback slapping against his back and the blur of his older brother only spurring him on.

Takuya himself doesn't slow down, he speeds up after looking at his watch. "You're gonna be late, hurry up Shinya!"

"Isn't this your fault?!" Shinya snaps. Takuya doesn't reply, he'd stick his tongue out if he wasn't worried he'd bite it clean off by accident.

The short bit of the remaining run is quiet, save for the sounds of their breathing, shoes beating the ground in a harsh rhythm as the city sounds fill in the gaps.

He's sliding into his seat just as the bell rings.

The teacher introduces herself as Akagi, their home room teacher. She's very attractive and many of the boys are whispering to each other, blushes staining their faces. She had light blue hair and brown eyes. Wait? Brown hair and eyes? She wore blue eye makeup and her lips were perfectly lined. Her dress shirt had the first two buttons undone. She winks at a few boys but then again Takuya could be seeing things wrong. There's a beauty mark under her right eye that seems more like a pinhole the longer Takuya looks. A pinhole for a tiny monster to crawl inside and control his teacher's body.

She quickly takes attendance then she goes on to explain the school rules everyone had already read before they were allowed to enroll. Takuya found it a complete waste of time but he's happy for the time to space out before actual lessons. "Your slippers are going to be color coded from now on. Green for the boys and purple for the girls." He already has a bad feeling about this. She was in the middle of explaining the rules of free times when the boy with the dog walks in. His hair's a mess and his uniforms dirty. A few twigs stick up from the tangle of his uniform. He looks like a gag monster.

Akagi sensei turns her attention on him, frown causing a small crease in her forehead. "Minamoto kun?"

"I'm sorry...My dog dragged me through the better part of downtown. I won't let it happen again." He bows his head, hoping to not anger her further.

"Take a seat behind Kanbara kun. That will be your seat, since today is the first day of school I'll let you off with a warning." She looks at him and nods.

"Thank you." He nods back, sliding into the seat behind Takuya.

Takuya fidgets for the next twenty minutes, wanting to look behind him to look at the guy- Minamoto- again.

Akagi Sensei begins to start their first class of the day, Japanese Language. While her back is turned to the class he stops resisting the urge to look behind him.

"Hey, hey what's your name?" He whispers, only being loud enough for the other to hear. He doesn't give a response for some time. "Did you hear me?"

"I heard you, and she said my name when I first came in." He isn't rude but at the same time, he isn't a shining example of politeness. He's just cold. Like he doesn't want to be close to anyone.

"No not your family name, your given name!"

"Why should I tell you?"

"Because I feel like I know you from somew-"

"Kanbara kun, is there something interesting about Minamoto kun that the class should be aware of? It is distracting you, you might as well let the whole class know."

"Um…." He freezes, voice nearly cracking. "I saw him this morning and I just wanted to ask if he was okay." He thanks everything he can think of that he was born the type to think best on their feet.

"I'm glad to see you're concerned about your classmates, but please pay attention to the lesson. If Minamoto kun has to, he is excused to go visit the nurse's office."

"I'm fine, thank you sensei."

When Akagi sensei turns back to the board, he feels the boy behind him glaring holes into the back of his head.

It was only his first day and he had a bad feeling about this.

The rest of his morning was fairly uneventful, he was so bored he didn't hear the bell ringing for lunch time until he saw other kids filing out of the room. He reached for his book bag before realizing he had no lunch. He decided to go to the bathroom to stretch in private and cough a little bit before returning to the empty classroom. Now he probably looked like a loser sitting by himself in an empty classroom during lunch. He opens the sliding door, right off the bat noticing something on his desk. It was a small lunch box. He walked over to it and read the note on it "Takuya". He laughs to himself. "I can't believe I missed that?" He thinks little of it, having found things he had been looking before turn up where it should've been obvious to see.

He opens the box and grins. "Thanks Mom!"

It wasn't much but it was his favorite. Hamburger. Funny though...He didn't remember his mother buying hamburger recently. Nonetheless he ate the lunch before him with vigor.

Afternoon classes passed on the same as morning classes. He wished he had gym today, but he was in the group from his grade that went tomorrow. He spent the majority of class time trying not to fall asleep by doodling fruit. They looked like apples and pomegranates.

After school he runs to Shinya's elementary school to walk him home. They walk home this time, Shinya telling him all about his day. How some girl Akiko had gotten sent to the principle's for punching her classmate in the face. Shinya informs him that the boy had called her a pig, so he didn't feel bad for the boy.

He then tells Takuya about how he met a boy named Daisuke who played the same video games as he did. They had, apparently, been fast friends. He smiles, ruffling his little brother's hair. He remembers a time when he had been annoyed with Shinya's brattiness. His mother said it had just been hormones making him moody.

Shinya continues to talk animatedly the rest of the way home until their mother told him to wash up for dinner.

"Hey mom? Thanks for the lunch today!" He calls from the bathroom with Shinya, they took turns washing their faces, their hands, and behind their ears.

"Lunch?" He can hear the frown in his mother's voice. "You left your lunch here this morning." He feels his stomach drop and the static in his head returns. Something wasn't right. This was too familiar.

He's unable to eat dinner that night, the static in his head making it too hard to focus on anything.


	2. Run (1)

Accidental self harm in the middle of this chapter.

The third day of school isn't very special in Takuya's opinion. He was already bored out of his mind. He figured he'd join an after school sports since Shinya had brought up wanting to join the school's Kendo club. While he thinks Kendo's cool, he'd rather not join a club for it. He prefers being free and even though he enjoys working with others and competing, he thinks joining a sport just for the opportunity to socialize wouldn't do him any good. He was already great at soccer.

So he picks the best choice in his opinion: Track and Field.

He'd be able to challenge himself and others, and what's better than that? Nothing. He already felt adrenaline pulsing in his veins.

He tells Shinya of his plans on the way home from school that day, smiling at Shinya's excitement. "You know that you'll have to come to my meets, right Shinya?"

"Yeah! But only if you come to mine, okay?"

"It's a promise." They lock their pinkies together, grinning in unison.

"Hey Mom, I was wondering if you could sign my form for me to get into Track and Field." He asks that night at dinner. His Mother asks him to pass him the drink pitcher, pouring herself a glass of the Lemonade he and Shinya had made, impatient for summer.

She takes a sip, face scrunching up. She doesn't say that it's too sugary, but he can read her face. He takes a gulp of the drink before him. It feels like a challenge, as if by doing something silly like that will earn him the right to do an after school sport.

"You can't run in your binder, you'll have to wear a sports bra and probably a larger shirt. Just as a precaution."

"I know, I don't run in it." Out of the corner of his eye he sees Shinya bite the inside of his cheek. He's glad that he and Shinya are on good terms where they don't rat eachother out. He still fumes at the memory of a younger Shinya telling his mother that he had cut his hair and that the hair was all over the bathroom.

"Hand me the form after dinner and I'll sign it." It had been a lot easier than he'd thought it'd be. He lets out a silent sigh and goes back to poking at his dinner. He'd been so excited he had lost his appetite. He'd have to sneak down stairs for left overs later tonight.

Shinya chatters on about some new video game he wants, and even if Takuya had wanted to hang onto every word he found himself unable. He hears snippets of the conversation.

"Mom can you get me Monster Hunter Freedom 2 for me for my birthday! I've been really really good all year!"

"We'll see Shinya, I can't make any promises."

The next time Takuya's able to focus, they're finishing up. Which meant he had to wash and Shinya dry while their mother got ready for her job. It was at the grocery half a block away, that way if they needed her she could get home fairly quickly.

She heads upstairs to change into her work uniform. Takuya starts up the water, not really thinking about it. He holds his hand out for Shinya to give him the plates, Shinya doing so quickly. 'His favorite cartoon must be coming on soon…' He washes the plates in the sink absentmindedly, going through the motions as they came. He passes Shinya the now clean plate to dry, starting on the next one.

Shinya winces, trying to dry the plate off quickly so he could set it down. They spend the next few moments in relative silence, clock ticking. When they're done Takuya just stands there, hands in the water. He feels himself relaxing but he can't for the life of him understand why. He doesn't need a reason at this point, but his brain itches.

"Big brother….Big brother?" he thinks Shinya's talking to him, maybe he is. He turns his head just to be sure. "Big brother your hands are all red again!"

"Oh…" He glances down at his reddened hands. He had scalded them in the hot water.

"You had the sink on the hottest setting, you have to stop doing that or Mom's gonna get mad and make me do the dishes instead! We both know I can't do dishes right!"

"It doesn't hurt Shinya." he insists but Shinya glares at him until he sighs in defeat. "Get me the cream."

He puts it on even though it doesn't hurt. He'd rather not have Shinya yell at him until he got a headache. "I'm gonna turn in early, you fine down here by yourself?"

"Yeah." Shinya says from his place sitting before the t.v.

"Don't stay up past nine and brush your teeth you smell like you've been kissing a dog."

"I do not!" Takuya narrowly avoids a pillow to the head for that comment.

Takuya collapses face first into the bed, laying there for a full minute before he can practically hear his Mother hounding on him not to sleep in his binder. He sits up enough to take his shirt and binder off, grabbing the shirt underneath his pillow and slipping it on. With that settled he falls back into his bed and slips away in record time.

"Takuya! Can you hear me? Wake up, wake up, wake up!" There's tears plopping down onto his cheeks. He musters up enough strength to shakily reached his hand out to hold the mystery individual's hand. He hears them choke out what sounds like his name once more.

When he speaks, he speaks in a voice that is and isn't his own. It sounds strange and hard, like he's been living longer than the 14 years he knows he has.

His surroundings become clearer, though he can't open his eyes. He can smell something now. It smells like burning rubber and ash. Right now he focuses on a scent he's familiar with, but doesn't know. It smells like flowers just before they die.

The hand holding his is sweaty and shakes in his grip. He squeezes weekly and the shivers cease, if only lightly. He coughs up blood. He knows it splatters against the other person's face. He can't find it in him to apologize too focused on comforting them.

"It's okay. Don't get so upset, Ko-"

He bolts upright, as if shocked by 12,000 volts of lightning. His stomach grumbles loudly and his head feels fit to burst. There's a sporadic pounding and the static's back. Takuya's body lurches out of bed on its own accord. He stands there panting by his bed, for a beat, trying to calm his racing heart. His stomach feels like it's dropped.

"What was that?"

He pads softly down the stairs, he had to deal with his stomach before he could even bother trying to process his dream.

He eats a small portion of the leftovers, planning on eating the rest for lunch tomorrow.

He can't shake the feeling of dread trickling down his spine, setting heavily some place in the cage of his ribs.

Takuya drops Shinya off earlier today, he wanted to get to see the track field before he turned in his slip. It's still chilly out and the grass has a kiss of rain dew still on it from earlier this morning. He walks until he stands in the middle of the middle of it all. Glancing around he frowns. He had felt eyes on the back of his head, all is silent but he can feel their presence.

The sun hasn't left its place from behind the clouds and it feels darker. He isn't afraid of the dark or shadows, quite the opposite. For some reason he feels a wave of comfort wash over him. Maybe he would come out here again.

After enduring a few minutes of the deafening silence, he sprints from the field.

He isn't sure if he's running from or to something.

After school he heads straight to the field again. There's a group of students gathered in a semi-circle there already, their school was known for starting clubs early off in the year. He scans the faces around him and is surprised to feel something akin to longing in his chest. It must be the material of the sports bra he was wearing.

"Alright everyone!" a boy about two years above them makes his way to the middle of the group. "We're here for slips and try outs. Some have requested to try out privately and have already been tested, some are here by recommendation. Let's try our best and have fun!"

His peers stand in a line, ready to hand their slips in. He knows this is just the mile today. He has nothing to worry about.

"Ready, set, go!" The senior blows his whistle loudly.

Takuya's breath steadies, a weight lifted off of his chest at the sound. Taking off like a bullet, he focuses only on his breathing and where his feet touch the ground for a split second.

He's faster than a fire spreading across gasoline.

"Kanbara kun is good, the second best we have…"

Takuya's drinking from the water bottle he had brought with him, the other potential Track and Field members chatting among themselves. Some occasionally turn around to gawk at him for a second.

"Speaking of which...Where is he? He should be here by now?"

"Maybe he's sick? Or his Mother is sick, she is a nurse after all."

"We'll find out tomorrow. Then."

Something doesn't seem right about the exchange. He wonders who they're talking about, but when he thinks too hard, the static is back.


	3. Thursday

On day five of the first week a new student joins their class.

"Class, a new student has transferred into our class. She had been overseas in America. Please introduce yourself to the class." Akagi sensei said in a chipper tone, though she didn't hide the expression of utter disdain on her face.

Takuya looks up from the sheet of paper he had been doodling on while waiting for class to start. His heart begins to thump loudly, static buzzing in his head.

" Orimoto Izumi." The static a crescendo in his head until, as suddenly as it started, it ends. His head feels clearer than it had been since the first day of school. Izumi bows and looks to the teacher. Takuya could tell she didn't think much of their teacher already. He couldn't blame her.

"Take the free seat by the window." Akagi sensei says, grabbing a piece of chalk to start the lesson.

Takuya stares at Izumi's long, golden hair. Maybe he had trouble looking at people with long hair? That Minamoto had long hair as well…. Takuya quickly shakes the thought, that'd be silly. It made no sense. All of this.

"Well class, this time next week we will be reciting English poems that we all relate to." Akagi sensei says, hands clasped together. Her blue nails looked like talons.

He spends the next forty five minutes of class drawing wind chimes.

Takuya had known he had forgotten something.

In English they had to pick a poem in English that they relate to somehow and recite it to the class. The teacher would grade them on their rhythm and pronunciation. They'd be reciting only until friday and he mentally curses himself out for not preparing properly for this. Takuya had remembered his dreams and had picked a poem that he thought would work well for him. Now that was fine and all but he hadn't practiced his pronunciation at all! He hoped the other students would go slow and have long poems.

"First will be Minamoto kun. Please come to the front of the class and share your poem."

Minamoto stands in front of the class, hands in his pockets. He looks to Akagi sensei before sighing.

"Recovery by Maya Angelou." he begins.

" A Last love," Minamoto looks directly at Takuya, his blue eyes bore into his.  
"proper in conclusion,  
should snip the wings  
forbidding further flight.  
But I, now,  
reft of that confusion,  
am lifted up  
and speeding toward the light."

The class is silent for a moment. Takuya himself probably couldn't speak if he wanted to unless he were screaming at the other boy. He hadn't expected to feel this thrilled to hold Minamoto's gaze with his own. He feels a fire ignite within him.

"Wonderful. Next?"

Akagi sensei calls on him next, he stands up at his seat and fumbles to find the paper he had hastily scrawled out the night prior. Large, purple ink blots fill the white page.

"Ah.. haha I will be doing "My Soul Is Sick With Longing" by Joseph Mary Plunkett."

"Now recite your poem in English , Kanbara kun." Akagi sensei says, smirk crawling up her fair face.

He clears his throat and tries once more. " My soul is sick with longing, shaken with loss, Yea, shocked with love lost sudden in a dream, Dream-love dream-taken, swept upon the stream Of dreaming Truth, dreamt true, yet deemed as dross: Dreamt Truth that is to waking Truth a gloss, Dream-love that is to the life of loves that seem To bear the rood of love's eternal theme, The strength that brings to Calvary their cross."

He absolutely butchers the pronunciation of "Calvary". His teacher seems to take great delight in his failure, eyes lighting up. He can feel Minamoto's eyes boring holes into the side of his face. He takes a deep breath, lungs hurting with how much air they're forced to hold.

"I dreamt that love had lit, a burning bird On one green bough of Time, of that dread tree Whereto my soul was crucified: that he Sang with a seraph's voice some wondrous word Blotting out pain, but swift the branch I heard Break, withered, and the song ceased suddenly." he bows quickly and takes his seat once more. His cheeks feel hot so he rests his face against his cool desk.

Several other of his classmates go but he could care less.

"Oritomo san would you like to share a poem with the class?" by Akagi sensei's tone she wasn't asking. Already he had seen that Izumi didn't like to speak in class.

"Yes." She makes her way to the front of the classroom in a manner that reminds him of a leaf blowing in the wind. Though her steps are sure, and her stance confident, he feels as if she will float up and hit the ceiling if he averts his gaze from her form.

"Begin."

 **"From childhood's hour I have not been** **  
****As others were; I have not seen** **  
****As others saw; I could not bring** **  
****My passions from a common spring.** **  
****From the same source I have not taken** **  
****My sorrow; I could not awaken** **  
****My heart to joy at the same tone;** **  
****And all I loved, I loved alone.** **  
****Then- in my childhood, in the dawn** **  
****Of a most stormy life- was drawn** **  
****From every depth of good and ill** **  
****The mystery which binds me still:** **  
****From the torrent, or the fountain,** **  
****From the red cliff of the mountain,** **  
****From the sun that round me rolled** **  
****In its autumn tint of gold,** **  
****From the lightning in the sky** **  
****As it passed me flying by,** **  
****From the thunder and the storm,** **  
****And the cloud that took the form** **  
****(When the rest of Heaven was blue)** **  
****Of a demon in my view.** Alone by Edgar Allan Poe." Takuya was left stunned. That was the most he'd ever heard her speak, she didn't skip or stumble like most of the other kids. But that's to be expected, right? She was in America for some time. She'd have to pick up some English eventually.

Izumi flips her golden hair over her shoulder.

Akagi sensei glares at the retreating back of Izumi. The bell rings and the students file out to get their lunches.

After school Takuya heads to Track and Field practice. He begins his stretches, ten toe touches and a few other ballistic stretches. He feels his muscles complain, but he's as relaxed as always. His shoes are just the perfect size that he can run in. He finds himself glad that he isn't in the middle of another growth spurt.

He's about ready to start on with a four lap run when one of the seniors calls him out.

"Kanbara kun we need your help!"

Takuya jogs over to the pair, tilting his head to the side a little. He'd been in the club for almost two weeks now and they had rarely spoken to him.

"We need you to get our best player for us. He's going to either be in the nurse's office or the library. He's been skipping practice, but he's too good to kick off." His senior looks only partially embarrassed to ask him a favor. Takuya glances back to the track forlornly.

"Yeah, I'll start in the nurse's office."

"We owe you one Kanbara kun!" he doesn't spare them so much as a nod as he runs away. He feels anticipation well up from somewhere deep inside him. He lets the feeling carry him to his destination.

This all feels familiar. He thinks something very wrong or very right is going to happen

The hallways are mostly empty, when Takuya makes it inside. He slows down to a leisurely walk, not wanting to get a scolding from a teacher. As he gets further down the halls and closer to the nurse's room, the air begins to get thick. It smelled with like down by the sea at night. Salty and thick with unease. Eventually the offensive smell passes as he gets further away from Akagi sensei's classroom.

It gets progressively darker as he ambles on. He isn't scared but the hair on the back of his neck is on end and there's a tugging at his heart. Before he knows it, his hand's on the door.

The lights are out, but he knows that someone's there. He stands in the darkness, breath coming out heavy. Like he had just run 5k. He finds the door is closed when he turns to check. He doesn't remember closing. He doesn't remember checking it, but he doesn't question it.

His nose is greeted by a familiar scent, he isn't sure how he knows it though.

"I'm from the Track and Field club, I'm here to pick you up." He hears a short giggle further back in the room. His heart hurts, almost as though it's being squeezed by a giant. He knows that laugh.

He takes another step into the room before thinking better of it. He reaches out, fumbling for the light switch. Even with the sudden light the room is cast in unreal shadows. The figure before him stands, back to him. Whoever it is, is holding ice to their long, long leg.

"Takuya." The voice says, it's light but there's a strength to it Takuya isn't sure he's heard out of dreams.

"Mina- no…" he catches himself, he's known that wasn't his classmate as soon as he'd stepped in the room, but he couldn't think of what else to say for a beat. "Who are you? ...You're hurt?"

His fellow team member got up from their crouch, turning around to face him. It's funny but...they seem to move in snapshots. Movements erratic but with a calmness and sureness behind them. Like a video game glitch! Now that he can clearly see what it is they're holding he realizes it's an ice pack. The first thing he notices is that he has to look up to meet their eyes. The second is that he's wearing a boy's uniform. He can't see the boy's face, it's shadowed too much. The most he can make out is the smile the other has after seeing him.

"Takuya." Takuya feels his knees buckle when he says his name. He sinks down onto his knees hard, but he can't feel them.

* * *

Poem credits to:  
Maya Angelou and Edgar Allan Poe


End file.
